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LIBRARY OF PRINCETON 






JUN 10 2004 


THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 


BL82 .M45 1924 
Marshall, Edward A. (Edward 
Asaph), b. 1866. | 
Jesus Christ compared with 
non-Christian teachers / 


Digitized by the Internet Archive 
in 2022 with funding from 
Princeton Theological Seminary Library — 


https://archive.org/details/jesuschristcompa0Omars 





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PESO SC ERS Tl 


COMPARED WITH 
NON-CHRISTIAN TEACHERS 


By 
EDWARD A. MARSHALL, Ph.D., D.D. 


Author 
“Christianity Compared with Non-Christian Religions,” “Christ 
the Master Soul-Winner,” “The Disciples in Christ’s 
School,” “Christ's Battle with the Pharisees,” 
“How Christ Lived and Labored 


in Palestine,” etc. 
LIBRARY OF PRINCETON: | 






Tuirp EDITION 


THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY 


PRICE TWENTY-FIVE CENTS 


ZONDERVAN PUBLISHING HOUSE 
GRAND RAPIDS MICHIGAN 


COPYRIGHT, MCMXXIV, BY 
EDWARD A. MARSHALL 


Printed in the United States of America 


ZONDERVAN PUBLISHING HOUSE 
EIGHT-FIFTEEN FRANKLIN STREET 
GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN 


INTRODUCTION 


Modern efforts to exalt the non-Christian religions to a 
place of equal value and authority with Christianity at once 
raises the question, Why did not Christ do it? All religions, 
except Mohammedanism had existed for five hundred years 
before Christ came! Why did He not give them His seal of 
endorsement the same as He did the religion of Abraham 
and Moses in the Old Testament? 

The discovery of choice ethical and moral epigrams in the 
religious teachings of Confucius, Buddha and Mohammed 
have led some persons to declare them divine. Why divine? 
May they not be simply human, the expressions of human 
consciences as Paul said of the heathen?—“Which show the 
work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also 
bearing witness and their thoughts meanwhile accusing or else 
excusing one another” (Rom. 2:15). 

Man needs to be delivered from the guilt, the power and 
the presence of sin. Religion is the field of knowledge where 
the truth concerning these things is revealed and learned, 
Any religion which cannot meet this need automatically fails. 
The all-absorbing, pressing question is—‘‘to which shall the 
human race go?” To answer this, in part at least, is the 
purpose of this study which is the fruitage of visits to many 
non-Christian lands and which is intended to supplement a 
previous volume, “Christianity and the Non-Christian Religions 
Compared.” 

This booklet is only a quick survey of the subject. It 
furnishes a simple outline and synopsis to introduce the study, 
with the hope that the startling contrast will exalt among the 
readers Him who has already been exalted and given a Name 
which is above every name. 


E. A. M. 





CONTENTS 


INTRODUCTION 
PROPHECY 
CREATOR . 
BIRTH . 

DEITY . 
HUMANITY 
EARTHLY LIFE . 


SOURCE OF KNOWLEDGE . 


RELATION TO Gop . 
Aim OF WoRK . 
View or Man . 
FOLLOWERS 

VIEW OF SIN 
SALVATION 

LOVE 

PRAYER 

TEACHING . 
MIRACLES . 

_ INTERCESSION 
ASSURANCE 
OVERCOMING . 
PRIESTHOOD . 
RECEIVED WoRSHIP 
DEATH OF FOUNDER 
RESURRECTION 
ASCENSION 
EXALTATION . 
RETURN 


ON OT &w 





PROPHECY 


Curist. One of the impossible tasks in human life is 
to prophesy, especially concerning the birth and history 
of a future child. Not a single fact can be specifically 
stated. God alone holds the key. When men prophesy, 
they wait until the child is born, and perhaps lived and 
died then they let their imagination run wild and tell 
how worlds and suns crashed and how angels did freak- 
ish things. It is not safe for man to prophesy unless he 
knows, and when he knows, then it is not prophecy. When 
God said, “Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a 
son, and shall call his name Immanuel” (Isa. 7:14), 
it was not prophecy to Him, but it was to the Jews. He 
stated a simple historical event in advance which gave 
Christ a distinct place among men. 

When men have startling miracles at their birth and after 
death, but none while they live they are short on credentials. 


It shows that someone became their “Press Agent” after 
they died. 


Conructus gave himself with great fidelity to the 
study of the “Ancient,” but ignored the study of the 
future. He made no effort to predict anything con- 
cerning himself or his teaching. In fact, he was so 
lacking in foresight that he thought his work would die 
with him, although it has lasted nearly twenty-five 
hundred years. 


The “assurances” of God are better than the “guesses” 
of men. 


Buppua taught that man is bound to the “Wheel of 
Life” (caught in the whirlpool of rebirth) and that all 
the future is governed by cosmic law. Any prophecy 


hs) 


PROPHECY 


could only be a statement of what the laws of nature 
would bring about. However, he undertook once to 
prophesy the future of his religion and said that “be- 
cause women had been admitted to his order it would 
last only five hundred years while it should have lasted 
one thousand years.” However, it has lasted nearly 
twenty-five hundred years which shows that Buddha was 
a poor prophet. 

Buddha endorsed suicide in one of his followers. But Jesus 


said of Christians, “I give unto them eternal life and they 
shall never perish.” Which teaching is best? 


MouamMED’s followers tried to increase his authority 
by declaring that he was a fulfilment of Old Testament 
prophecies. They insist that the statement in Deut. 18: 
15-18—“A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up 
from among your brethren,” refers to Mohammed be- 
cause the Ishmaelites are the only “brethren”’ the Jews 
ever had. They say also that the word “desire” in 
Hag. 2:7 is the same as Mohammed and that Mount 
Paran in Hab. 3:3, is Mecca. 

Mohammed, himself, was a man of strong imagina- 
tion and his attempts at prophetic forecasts took the 
nature of the longings of a military adventurer. 


Men in all ages have realized sin but no one ever found 
a true salvation until Christ came. 


Hinows realize that foretelling things belongs to Deity 
and since the Hindu “holy man” makes positive claims 
to divine relationship he resorts to forecasting future 
events to substantiate his assertions. 

Confucius tried to lift himself by his own boot straps but 
his constant verdict was, “I have not attained.” 


6 


CREATOR 


Curist is given the remarkable position of being the 
Creator of the creation He came to save. John intro- 
duces Him in his gospel saying, “All things were made 
by him and without him was not anything made that 
was made.” Paul endorses this in Eph. 3:9, “Who 
created all things by Jesus Christ,” and in Heb. U2 
“By whom also he made the worlds.” Jesus therefore 
had a very personal interest in His own world and its 
redemption. How different from Confucius, who dis- 
claimed any interest in the earth or its origin; or 
Buddha, who taught that it came by chance and would 
vanish by the same cause; or the Brahmans, who taught 
that a Mt. Meru on the earth was 756,000 miles high 
and had a city on its summit 126,000 miles in extent. 
God’s revelation is better than man’s speculations. 


Christ is the only Teacher who promised to come back per- 
sonally for His followers. 


ConFucius taught that heaven and earth are the par- 
ents of all things. He refused on several occasions even 
to talk on the origin of created objects, claiming that 
it was a waste of time and thought. 


The man who rejects Christ will soon find the curtain of 
spiritual darkness is being lowered between him and God. 


Buppua had “no creator, no creation or original 
germ of things; no soul of the world; no personal or 
impersonal; no supermundane or antemundane prin- 
ciple.” He refused to discuss the origin of things or 
the eternity of matter. However, he made the startling 
assertion that it is one of the worst forms of heresy 
for any person to declare he exists. He also said, “The 


7 


CREATOR 


body is man’s prison-house, the abode of evil.” From 
this it is easy to see that he was not the creator. 


When men boast about their holiness they have not the 
kind you need. 


MoHAMMED based his view of creation on narratives 
which he borrowed from the Old Testament. His chapter 
on “Cattle” in the Koran reads: “Praise belongs to God 
who created the heavens and earth and brought into 
being the darkness and light” [a protest against dual- 
ism], “Yet do those who misbelieve, hold him to have 
peers” [a protest against the Trinity and idolatry]. 
“He it is who created you from clay.” 


HinputisM teaches that “spirit and matter are insepar- 
able and that God is all and all is God.” There is no 
individual creator. This teaching was introduced by 
Manu. Previous to that their belief was monotheistic 
and the Vedas taught that, ‘““Numberless are the revolu- 
tions of the world—creations and destructions and re- 
creations.” “‘He, the Almighty, brings them forth, as 
it were in sport, lets death follow life, and life, death.” 
The Brahmans, two thousand years B.c., believed that 
God created the world by the power of His will, which 
shows that they were still under the influence of the 
Old Testament revelation that came down to them 
through the Punjab with their Aryan ancestors. Modern 
Hindus have set the personality of God aside, saying, 
“We cannot pronounce the Supreme to be existent or 
non-existent.” 

When filthiness is a sign of sanctity beware of the religion 
it comes from. 


8 


Belthole 


Curist. The angel said to Mary, “The Holy Ghost 
shall come upon thee and the power of the Highest 
shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing 
which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of 
God” (Luke 1:35). “She brought forth her firstborn 
son, wrapped him in swaddling clothes and laid him in 
a manger” (Luke 2:7). Then the angels sang to the 
shepherds: “Unto you is born this day in the city of 
David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11). 


ConFuctus was born in the province of Shantung, 
B.c. 501. His father was a military officer of marked 
bravery. He died when Confucius was three years old. 
Having always been a poor man, he left his family in 
straitened circumstances; which Confucius, in later life, 
said was a good thing. No event happened to indicate 
that Confucius had any super-human mission in the 
world. 


Buppua’s followers herald his birth as follows: 
“After seven days fasting and seclusion the pure and 
holy Maya dreams that she is carried by archangels to 
heaven and that there the future Buddha enters her 
right side in the form of a superb white elephant. 
One thousand worlds were filled with light. During ten 
months of his life in the womb the child sat cross- 
legged, distinctly visible, preached to angels,” etc. When 
born, Buddha took seven steps and exclaimed with a 
lion’s voice, “I am the chief of the world. This is my 
last birth.” ‘Dwellers in ten thousand worlds shielded 
him with umbrellas ten miles high—they sounded his 


9 


BORG, 


praises on conchshells one hundred twenty cubits long— 

the blast reverberated four and one-half months.” 
Everyone who starts a religion ought to be required to 

begin by raising someone from the dead as a guarantee. 


MouamMeEp’s birth has been surrounded by absurd 
fancies. When his father Abdallah married Amina, it 
is said that two hundred virgins died of broken hearts. 
When Mohammed was born he was entrusted to a nurse 
of a desert tribe, who discovered that he had epileptic 
fits and brought him back at the end of two years. 
These spells continued into adult life and he took ad- 
vantage of them by claiming that they were trances, 
during which Gabriel taught him the chapters of the 
Koran. His father died just before, or soon after his 
birth and his mother died when he was seven years old. 
He was brought up by relatives and was of a mild 
disposition in his youth. 

A teacher who can only guess as to man’s origin is not 
qualified to guarantee what his end will be. 


HinpuismM. “‘When the Universal Soul took at the 
beginning the shape of a man he beheld nothing but 
himself.” He said, “This I am.” Hence the name “T” 
was produced. Being alone, he was afraid. He said, 
“Since nothing but myself exists, of whom should I 
be afraid?” “He did not feel delight, therefore he 
divided this Self twofold. Hence were husband and 
wife produced like a split pea separated. Then these 
two mortals assumed the forms of all creatures, male 
and female, in turn. In this manner he created every 
living pair whatsoever, down to ants.” 


When a religion is full of fanatical teaching, beware, lest 
its results be all fiction. 


10 


DEITY 


CurisT was God, by many infallible proofs. Other 
teachers have been men and nothing more, by equally 
infallible proofs. Search the world and see if any other 
teacher besides Christ has had such testimonies as these: 
“But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne O God is forever 
and ever” (Heb. 1:8). “Who being in the form of 
God thought it not robbery to be equal with God” (Phil. 
2:6). “Great is the mystery of godliness, God manifest 
in the flesh” (I Tim. 3:16). “In the beginning was the 
Word and the Word was with God and the Word was 
God” (John 1:1). Jesus said to Satan concerning Him- 
self, “Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God’? (Luke 
4:12). The demons said to Christ, “What have we to 
do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God” (Matt. 8:29). 
John wrote, “Who is a liar but he that denieth that 
Jesus is the Christ” (I John 2:23). 


ConFucius laid no claim to Deity. He said, “If 
heaven had wished to let the cause of truth perish, then 
I, a future mortal, should not have had such a relation 
to that cause.” “At fifteen my mind was bent on learn- 
ing; at thirty I stood firm; at forty I had doubts; at 
fifty I knew the will of God; at sixty I could trust my 
ears; at seventy I could follow my heart’s desire without 
transgression.” However, about the last date he tried 
to persuade one ruler to go and kill a rival who had 
usurped a throne. 


BuppHa did not claim to be a superior Being in any 
definite sense, but he did claim to have reached the 
state of perfection, according to his own definition, 
which is the “‘extinction of desire.” His doctrine of cause 


ll 


DEITY: 


and effect shut a personal God out of the Universe which 
of course prevented him from claiming any relationship 
to Deity. 

Buddha’s death from eating pork is a strange contrast to his 
statement to his disciples, “I am the greatest of all beings.” 


MouAmMMEpD laid no claim to Deity or to superior 
righteousness. He claimed that his authority and po- 
sition came to him by appointment. He linked his name 
with that of the God of the Bible, but he rejected the 
authority of the Bible over his own life and conduct. 
His view of Christ was as follows: The Koran says, 
“Verily Jesus is as Adam in the sight of God. He cre- 
ated him of dust. He then said to him, ‘Be,’ and he 
was” (Surah 3:52). “The Christians say that the 
Messiah is the Son of God. God fight them. How they 
lie” (Surah 9:30). The Koran denies that Christ was 
crucified, and says that a criminal was substituted in 
His place at the last moment. 


The fact that a man can talk pious does not mean that he 
is sent of God. 


HINnpDUIsM is now pantheistic and teaches that, “Every- 
thing from the lowest estate of a straw to the highest 
estate of a god, is Brahma. All gods and worlds are 
sealed in this Divine Spirit which, by cause and effect, 
produces what comes to pass. The Hindu conception of 
God takes an account of His personality, His separation 
from man, His sovereign will and the essence of His 
character, righteousness, purity or love.” 

Would you think it consistent to name a cigarette after the 
Virgin Mary? There is one named after Mohammed’s daugh- 
ter, Fatima. The difference is in the source of the two re- 


ligions—God and man. 
12 


HUMANITY 


Curist, though Divine, was intensely human. He 
grew up as a normal child, to manhood. He suffered 
hunger (Luke 4:2); thirst (John 4:7); weariness (John 
4:6); He had compassion (Matt. 9:33); love (Matt. 
10:21; John 11:5); grief (John 11:35). His humanity 
was complete, as Paul says, “Wherefore in all things it 
behoved him to be made like unto his brethren.” And 
again in Heb. 4:15, He “was in all points tempted like 
as we are, yet without sin.” Christ referred to Himself 
eighty times as the Son of man, some of which refer to 
Him after His resurrection. 


ConFucius did not speculate on the origin of man 
nor did he seek to know about his hereafter. Yik King 
(Classic No. 2) says, “The heaven and the earth had a 
beginning and if that can be said of them how much 
more truly of man.” “After there was a heaven and 
earth, all material things were formed; male and female 
appeared, man and woman.” “Man is the representa- 
tive of heaven and is supreme over all things: woman 
yields obedience to the instructions of man, and helps 
to carry out his principles. On this account she can 
determine nothing of herself and is subject to the rule 
of three obediences: (1) To father and elder brother. 
(2) To husband. (3) To son.” 


The Bible says that God created woman to be a “helpmeet.” 
Man displaced her. Christ restored her. 


Buppua’s last teachings were that “The foolish man 
conceives the idea of self; the wise man sees there is 
no ground on which to build the idea of self.” “The 
soul of man does not consist of two things, an atman 
(self) and of manas (mind or thoughts), but that it 


13 


HUMANITY 


is made up of thoughts alone. The thoughts of a man 
constitute his soul.” 


MouAMMED’S weak human nature was always in evi- 
dence. He was treacherous, as in the case of the poet 
Caab, whom he caused to be murdered. He was war- 
like, too, for his biographers say, “He personally con- 
ducted twenty-seven expeditions with nine pitched battles 
and many deaths.” He practiced deception in defense 
of his sins by uttering prophetic revelations. He used 
God’s holy name to support his ambitious schemes and 
lightly disposed of evil as follows, “When a Moham- 
medan performeth ablutions he washes his hands from 
faults they committed, and also his feet, so that he 
riseth up in purity.” 

No non-Christian teacher ever yearned over his disciples 
and told them that he wanted them to be with him in the 
next world. Christ did. 


Hinputism had no outstanding person who called to 
his fellows, “Follow me,” as have other religions. This 
position was taken however by the whole Brahman 
priesthood which arrogated to itself the preroga- 
tives of spiritual authority. It teaches that Brahm 
created four kinds of men, each of which forms a caste: 
(1) From the head he made Brahmans whose business it 
is to instruct mankind. (2) From the arm he made 
the Kashatryas to defend the race (warriors). (3) From 
the body he made the Vaisyas to nourish mankind. (4) 
From the feet he made the Sudras to serve and obey 
the other castes. 


If any relicion teaches you to think you are “not very bad” 
you may be. .e it is man-made. 


14 


EARTHLY LIFE 


Curist’s earthly life was so simple, yet profound, 
that it has excited the wonder of all men. Even Napoleon 
at St. Helena said of the gospel story, “I never tire 
with reading it, and I read it daily with equal delight.” 
Jesus showed how God could live a human life. Peter, 
who was His daily companion, said of Him, after nearly 
thirty years of reflection, ““Who did no sin, neither was 
guile found in his mouth” (I Peter 2:22). John, who 
was the most intimately acquainted with Christ of all 
earthly people, wrote after over fifty years to consider 
His words, “No unrighteousness is in him.” 


ConFuctus was born 551 B.c. When three years old 
his father died. At nineteen he married and at twenty- 
two he began teaching. He was contemporary with Lao 
Tse, Pythagoras and Cyrus. Confucius occupied various 
official positions, closing with that of Prime Minister of 
his province. Then he took up teaching and the work 
of compiling his books. He had one son who died be- 
fore Confucius did, leaving a son who became the 
teacher of Mencius. About 75,000 of his descendants 
are said to be now living in China. Confucius died over 
over seventy years of age. 


BUDDHA was much worried in early manhood 
especially over the mystery of sickness and death. To 
solve these problems he forsook his home when twenty- 
nine years of age and spent six years wandering as an 
ascetic and studying with Brahman priests. Finding 
no solution, he started home. (See “followers.”) His 
life history has been filled with fiction as the following 
item shows: “The priests teach that Buddha had lived 


15 


EARTHLY LIFE 


in four hundred million worlds, and in this world he 
had had five hundred fifty births, viz., as an ascetic 
eighty-three times; a monarch fifty-eight times; a tree 
forty-three times; a religious teacher twenty-six times. 
He was man, prince, priest, noble, gambler, serpent, 
fish, rat, jackal, crow, pig, dog,” etc. 


MoHAMMED was born in Mecca, Arabia, about 571 
A.D., and died 632 a.p. He married a wealthy widow 
when twenty-five and began his prophetic work at about 
40. He had six children, the two boys dying in their 
youth. He was subject to epileptic fits. At times he 
thought himself possessed of the devil and contemplated 
suicide. He spent much time in meditation in a cave at 
Mt. Hara where later he claimed to receive revelations 
from Gabriel. He bitterly opposed idolatry and was 
driven from Mecca for a time. After his wife Kadijah 
died he married nine wives, eight of whom were widows. 
After his return from Medina to Mecca he adopted the 
sword to propagate his religion. 


HinpuisM. The Upanishads teach that, “From the 
Self sprang ether; from ether, air; from air, fire; from 
fire, water; from water, earth; from earth, herbs, food, 
seed; from seed, man. Man thus consists of the essence 
of food. From food are produced all creatures on earth. 
They live by, grow on and return to food. Different 
from this is the inner Self—it is breath. Higher than 
this is mind—higher yet is understanding—still higher 
is bliss.” Such teaching betrays the source of some 
of the new cults which have come to America in the 
past generation. 


16 


SOURCE OF KNOWLEDGE 


Curist’s confidence regarding His teaching is full of 
inspiration. He linked what He said to the Father’s 
authority. “As my Father hath taught me, I speak 
these things” (John 8:28), and He was so certain of 
their truthfulness that He used such expressions as 
“Verily, verily,” or “We know.” Men felt that He 
told the truth and was genuine, as Nicodemus said, 
“We know that thou art a teacher come from God.” 
Christ meant that His words should be believed and He 
put His personal guarantee back of them, saying, “If 
a man keep my saying he shall never see death.” 

Who can turn away from such a Savior? 


Conrucius’ source of knowledge was the ancient 
Odes. He studied the earlier writings called “Dia- 
grams, with commentaries called “Ten Wings,” so 
much that the leather straps were worn out three times. 
Regarding his learning he said, “I was not born en- 
dowed with knowledge. I am merely a man who loves 
the ancients and do all I can to arrive at truth. There 
may be those who act without knowing why. I do not 
do so. Hearing much and selecting what is good and 
following it, this is the style of knowledge.” He did 
not find anyone who measured up to this, however, as 
he said, ““A sage is not mine to see... . could I see 
a man of real talent and virtue, that would satisfy me.” 


Buppua declared that he “arrived at his convictions, 
not by a study of the Vedas, nor from the teachings of 
others, but by the light of reason and intuition alone.” 


es 


SOURCE OF KNOWLEDGE 


MoHAMMED claimed that his teaching came from God 
through the angel Gabriel, but so much of the Koran 
bears resemblance to the Bible that we must examine 
his history. When but a youth he visited the annual 
Fair at Bosra, where he is said to have met a Nestorian 
monk named Felix who is accused by Christian writers 
of assisting Mohammed in the contrivance and compo- 
sition of the Koran. Mohammed also recalled having 
met Bishop Coss and having heard from him what 
he called, “The preaching of the catholic faith of 
Abraham.” Another contact with Christianity was 
through Zeid, a youth captured from a Christian tribe, 
and adopted by Mohammed. Also, he could have learned 
from a concubine slave named Mary, whom he married, 
who had been a Coptic Christian in Egypt. Lastly, 
Waraca, a cousin of Mohammed’s wife, embraced Chris- 
tianity and translated portions of the Bible into Arabic. 
Surely Mohammed was “without excuse.” 


HinputsM declares that “the four books of the Vedas 
were given at creation, revealed by Brahm himself.” 
“Additional instruction has since been received by the 
early Rishis and the later Brahman priests, who by their 
self-mortification, have gained the sympathy of the gods 
and secured the teaching.” “The poets say that the wise 
men discovered ‘in their hearts’ that the germ of Being 
existed in the Not Being. But who could tell how Being 
first originated? The gods came later and are unable to 
reveal how creation began. He who guards the Universe 
knows; or mayhap he does not know.” 


18 


RELATION TO GOD 


Curist bore the most intimate and tender re- 
lationship to God the Father, as the following verses 
declare. “He that sent me is with me.” “I and my 
Father are one.” “My meat is to do the will of him 
that sent me” (John 4:34). “I do always the things 
which please him.” “I know that thou hearest me al- 
ways” (John 11:42). Put any one of these utterances 
into the mouth of Confucius, Buddha, or Mohammed and 
see how they sound. They seem wholly out of place 
because none but He who is God could say them. 


ConFuclus said, ““To give one’s self to the duties due 
to men, and, while respecting spiritual beings, to keep 
aloof from them, may be called wisdom.” He believed 
in the power of heaven to decree, to reward and punish; 
he worshiped heaven and earth, the spirits and ances- 
tors; he prayed, and placed much emphasis on the 
duties and ceremonies of mourning for parents.’ Once 
he said, ““We cannot as yet perform our duties to men; 
how can we perform our duty to spirits?” 


BuppHua declared that he saw no “one in the universe 
whom he ought to worship.” He said, “And I say to 
mankind, Be not curious about God, for I who am 
curious about each am not curious about God.” His 
conception of man also foregoes any relation to God. 
He said, “There is no separate ego-soul outside or be- 
hind the thoughts of man. He who believes that the ego 
is a distinct being has no correct conception of things.” 

If a religion does not guarantee a bodily resurrection it 
will not be worth anything to you in life or death. 


i, 


RELATION TO GOD 


MouAMMED claimed to be the most exalted of all 
the prophets; that he had been chosen of God to give 
his last revelation to mankind, and also that he would 
be the only intercessor for Mohammedans at the Judg- 
ment, to whom God would yield. He took the position 
that he was the mouthpiece of God and that what he 
spoke could not be wrong. His messages were craftily 
worded so as to make them appear as if God had sent 
them directly to the people. However, he knew his own 
weaknesses so well that he never assumed to claim any 
divine attributes, as others had done. His followers 
have claimed that he was the “another Comforter” 
whom Christ promised to send. 


Not one non-Christian teacher ever testified on his death- 
bed, or at any other time, that his sins had been forgiven by 
God. Take warning. 


HinpvisM teaches that since God is all, it follows that 
each human being is a part of Him and that this must 
be believed to secure relief. “He who knows God, be- 
comes God. He who knows what soul is gets beyond 
grief.” “God is the sole reality. All else is only appear- 
ance; it seems, but is not. Its seeming existence is owing 
to ignorance, otherwise called illusion. God and Ignor- 
ance are two external existences.” The Yogis try to 
become divine by overcoming the human. They sit in 
painful postures, hold the breath, refrain from cleanli- 
ness, etc., in their strivings to become possessed of 
divine life and power. 

You can tell the source of a religion by the way it deals 
with sin. God wants sin crucified—man wants it reformed. 


20 


AIM OF WORK 


CuRIST came into the world to present Himself a vica- 
rious sacrifice for human sin and to finish a complete 
eternal salvation. He kept every relationship clearly in 
mind. To the Jewish guardians of the Law, He said, “I 
am not come to destroy (the Law) but to fulfill” (Matt. 
8:17). Again He said, “I came not to call the righteous 
but sinners to repentance.” “My meat is to do the will 
of him that sent me.” “I am come that they might have 
life.” “Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, 
and to enter into his glory?” Jesus never faltered, 
complained, side-stepped, retracted, apologized, showed 
weakness or self-will. He was God’s perfect man doing 
His perfect work. 


ConFucius’ work was the revision of the sacred books, 
and teaching disciples. These books had long been re- 
garded in China as the source of wisdom and knowledge. 
His compilations consist of the Five Classics and Four 
Books. His disappointment over his life work was 
expressed to a follower seven days before his death. 
“There is not one in the empire that will make me his 
master. My time has come to die. The superior man 
dislikes the thought of his name not being mentioned 
after his death.” 


Buppua’s self-confessed hoax was to lead people to 
freedom from all evil by the extinction of all desire. 
Prof. Max Muller in his “Chips from a German Work- 
house,” says, “The religion of Buddha was made for a 
madhouse.” The following summary bears this out. 
“Buddhism passes from apparent atheism and material- 
ism to theism, polytheism and spiritualism. Under one 


218 


AIM OF WORK 


aspect it is mere pessimism; under another, pure phil- 
anthropy; under another, monastic communism—high 
morality — materialistic philosophy — demonology — 
a farrago of superstitions, necromancy, witchcraft, idol- 
atry and fetishism.” 


MouAMMED hoped to restore the religion of Ishmael. 
At one time he tried to win the Jews by harmonizing 
his teaching with theirs and by telling his followers to 
pray toward Jerusalem. Again he tried to win Chris- 
tians by various concessions. In both of these he failed. 
He also tried to win the idolatrous Koreish tribe by ac- 
knowledging the divine power of their goddess. How- 
ever, after they accepted his overture, he saw his 
mistake and recanted. His early method of approach 
was teaching, but after his truce with Mecca he was so 
exalted that he changed his method to violence and 
coercion. He took to the sword and demanded surrender 
or tribute. His divine revelations became warlike. He 
once declared to his soldiers, ““War is ordained for you 
even though it be burdensome.” 


Hinputsm exhibits, as its highest product, a filthy, 
half-clad, unwashed fakir, covered with dust or ashes 
and talking a jibberish to deceive people into thinking 
he is holy. 

The Brahmans put the yoke of Caste on the Hindus 
the same as the Pharisees put the yoke of traditions 
and ceremonials on the Jews. They heap up burdens 
grievous to be borne and will not remove them with 
one of their fingers, lest they be defiled. 

If you wish to know the origin of the non-Christian re- 
ligions read Romans 1: 18-25. 


22 


VIEW OF MAN 


Curist knew men. During His entire life He was 
in closest contact with people and was never once mis- 
taken in His judgment of any person. “He knew all 
men.” “He knew what was in man” (John 2: 24-25). 
“Jesus knew from the beginning who they were that 
believed not, and who should betray him” (John 6:64). 
After living with Christ for three years Peter said to 
Him, “Thou knowest all things.” Jesus is therefore 
the absolute authority on man and his needs. When 
He said, “Ye must be born again,” His judgment was 
final. Again He said, “If ye believe not that I am he 
ye shall die in your sins.” 


Conrucius said, “All men are naturally good but 
the desire for pleasure changes them.” “Heaven and 
earth are the parents of all things and of all things 
men are the most intelligent.”” He did not trouble to 
account for the origin of man nor did he seek to know his 
hereafter. Tsze-loo asked Confucius what constituted 
the superior man, to which Confucius replied, “The 
cultivation of the mind in reverent carefulness.” Once 
he said, “I will not be afflicted at men’s not knowing 
me. I will be afflicted that I do not know men.” 


Buppua taught that, “All things come into existence, 
change and vanish in obedience to an absolutely rigid 
law of cause and effect.” The Buddhist doctrine of 
Karma is, “that every man’s condition in life is the 
consequence and exact equivalent of his act in a pre- 
vious state.”” “When a man takes a bath and steps on 
a wet rope and thinks it a snake he is frightened, but is 
relieved when he sees it is no snake. That is the state 


23 


VIEW OF MAN 


of mind of one who thought he possessed ‘self’ and 
then found that there is no self—that the cause of all 
his troubles and vanities is a mirage, a shadow, a 
dream.” 


MoHAMMED taught that God made man from clay. 
Again he quoted Gabriel’s saying that God had made 
man out of “congealed blood.” He never took time to 
settle which was right. Mohammed stood for the general 
equality of men. He left women in bondage and re- 
quired them to wear veils. When he died, he forbade 
any of his widows to remarry. Concerning the character 
of men he said, “Among men many have been found 
perfect, but among women, only four: Asia, daughter 
of Pharaoh; Mary, daughter of Amram; Kadijah, wife 
of Mohammed, and Fatima, his daughter.” 


Mohammed offered his followers happiness in two worlds, 
but he gave no evidence of having it himself in either place. 


HinputsM teaches that the souls of men are portions 
of the spirit of Brahm. They proceed from him as 
sparks from a flame and afterwards return to him 
again. The operations of the soul are directed by him 
in conformity with his own predetermined decrees. 
“The soul is enclosed in the body as a shell, or a series 
of shells, such as the five senses.” The Hindu Shastras 
represent man as “a mere illusion, the poor plaything 
of the Absolute One.” For a man to assume to de- 
clare his own real existence is but the ravings of his 
ignorance.” 


When Confucius told his disciples to let God alone he 
signed his own death warrant as a religious leader. 


24, 


FOLLOWERS 


CHRIST opened His ministry with two expressions, 
“Repent,” and “whosoever will,” and His service was 
given to anyone from a leper to the ruler of the syna- 
gogue. Confucius said he taught one corner of a truth 
but declined to teach the other corners to those who 
could not think them out themselves. He respected only 
men of strong intellects. Mohammed took disciples who 
promised to murder his enemies, but Jesus said to His 
disciples, “Follow me, and I will make you fishers of 
men” (Matt. 4:9). Jesus was faithful to His followers. 
Read John 17: 6, 9, 11, 12, 15, 18, 24, 26. The security 
of the believer in Jesus is greater than that of bolts 


and bars. 

Mild Mohammed’s sudden friendship for the murderous 
Ali shows he was willing to throw off the sheep’s clothing 
when the chance came—and he did. 


ConFucius first undertook the work of reform from 
his official position as a government employee. Not fully 
realizing his hopes in this, he left, devoting his full 
time to compiling his Classics and teaching disciples; 
being very particular as to who should receive his 
instruction. “Historians estimate that he had three 
thousand followers; of whom five hundred had attained 
official station, seventy-two had penetrated deeply into 
his system, and ten of the highest class of mind and 
character were continually near his person.” 


Mohammed despised Christ but he wanted heaven. He for- 
got that Christ made the only heaven there will ever be. 


BuppHA, after searching several years as an ascetic 
for knowledge, decided it a fruitless search and started 
to return home. His few disciples forsook him. Then 
came his experience of enlightenment under the Bo tree 


25 


FOLLOWERS 


after which he went to Benaires, where he found his 
five disciples and won them back by testifying of his 
discovery that “‘to cease to exist is the solution of all 
human trouble,” a discovery which he said entitled him 
to the name of Buddha or “enlightened.” His disciples 
soon became so numerous that he had to restrain them 
by insisting that the Bikkhus must study ten years before 
ordination. He once said to his disciples, “Ye are my 
lawful sons, born of my mouth, born of my religion.” 

It is better to have a religion that tells you just what you 
are and then saves you, than to have one that flatters you and 
then loses your soul. 

MouHAMMED first appealed for followers in these 
words, “I know no man in the land of Arabia who can 
lay before his kinfolks a more excellent offer than that 
which I now make to you. I offer you the happiness both 
of this world and that which is to come. God Almighty 
hath commanded me to call mankind unto Him. Who 
therefore among you will second me?” Impetuous Ali 
sprang up and said, “I, O Apostle of God, will be thy 
minister, I will knock out the teeth, tear out the eyes, 
rip up the bellies and cut off the legs of all who oppose 
thee.” Then Mohammed embraced him before the as- 
sembled guests and said, “This is my brother, my 
deputy, hear then and obey him.” 

How would Ali’s testimony sound in a Christian church 


prayer meeting? Mohammed thought it fine. What would 
Christ have said? 


Hinputism gets its followers through heredity. Its 
iron-clad caste system prevents its doing missionary 
work. Each individual is born into the caste to which 
he afterward belongs for life. 

When Buddha said that man is an “illusion” he forfeited his 
right to instruct those whom God made “after his own image.” 


26 


VIEW OF SIN 


Curist knows sin as no other being can. He saw it 
in heaven with Satan, on earth in men and in Hades 
with lost souls. His diagnosis was perfect and final. 
Jesus never joked about evil nor called sin an “illusion,” 
for it cost Him His life. He said, “Whosoever com- 
mitteth sin is the servant of sin” (John 8:34). His 
profound utterance in John 3:16 is the basis upon which 
men are judged. He said that the first work of the Holy 
Spirit among men is to “reprove the world of sin,” 
“of sin, because they believe not on me” (John 16: 
8,9). God must settle the sin question with each indi- 
vidual first before He can talk about anything else. 


All of the gods of the heathen are sinners. How can a 
god-sinner save a human sinner to holiness? 


ConFucius taught that sin is the excess of human 
desire and endeavor. Said he, “I have not seen one 
who could perceive his own faults and inwardly accuse 
himself.” “Of the three thousand crimes included under 
the five kinds of punishment, there is none greater than 
disobedience to parents.” He left God out entirely. 
Mencius taught that, ““The tendency of man’s heart to 
be good is like the tendency of water to flow down- 
wards.” “If men do what is not good, the blame cannot 
be imputed to their natural powers.” 


When a religion bases its salvation on “reform” you may 
know it is worthless. 


Buppua had nothing to say about the guilt of sin. 
It was simply the misery of it that he desired to be 
delivered from. He had no way of overcoming its evil 
except by ceasing to exist. He taught that as desire 
weakened, sin became less. He illustrated it thus: “As 


ME 


VIEW OF SIN 


the oil supplies the wick with fuel for light, so desire 
supplies us with power to exist. As the oil runs out the 
light gets lower and when the oil is gone the light goes 
out—so with life.” 


Why is it that some men think the Atonement is ignoble? 
Christ didn’t. Neither did the Father nor the Holy Spirit, 


nor the angels. 


MouamMep had self-invented doctrines about sin. 
Although he used much from the Bible along historical 
lines he never quoted anything regarding sin or God’s 
provision for its forgiveness. In this he was without 
excuse, for he knew enough to reject Christ’s Deity 
which means he must have known what it meant to 
accept it. On his deathbed, when his wives spoke of 
the Christian churches they had seen in Abyssinia, he 
exclaimed, “The Lord destroy the Jews and Christians. 
Let there be but one faith throughout Arabia.” 


Don’t accept a religion until you find whether God has 
or not. 


HinpuIsM teaches that, “since all is God, then sin 
and evil are a part of Him and there is nothing in Him 
to judge and condemn Himself. Sin is intellectual ig- 
norance and the remedy is to learn the true knowledge 
that self is an illusion.” At the Parliament of Religions, 
held in Chicago in 1893, Swami Vivikanada spoke as 
follows: “You are the children of God, the sharers of 
immortal bliss, holy and perfect beings. . . . The worst 
lie you ever told yourself was that you were a sinner 
and a wicked man.” 


When a religious teacher invents his way of salvation, 
beware, for his heaven must be an invention too. 


28 


SALVATION 


CurisT knows full well the cost of man’s salvation 
for He alone paid the price. Contrast the statement, 
“Christ died for our sins,” with the worthless Confucian 
teaching—“‘Sincerity is the way to heaven”’; or the false 
doctrine of Buddha—“By one’s self one is purified”; 
or the cruel fatalism of Mohammed. God says that the 
forgiveness of sin is based on Christ’s death. “The Lord 
hath laid upon him the iniquity of us all.” ‘Neither 
is there salvation in any other.” 


” 


ConFucius said, “Sincerity is the way to heaven. He 
who possesses sincerity is he who, without an effort, 
hits what is right.” “Think righteousness, prepare to 
give up life, and keep agreements—such is a complete 
man.” “Truth is that which God is and man attains to.” 
But Confucius’ salvation was confined to this life. 
Rewards for good were simply “good fortunes’ ex- 
perienced here, of which there are five. They may be 
seen represented today in China by the red and gilt 
papers which flutter over the doors of Chinese homes 
and mean—Long life, Riches, Health, Virtue and a 
Natural Death. 


Buppua taught that Sacrifices, Redeemers and Medi- 
ators counted for nothing. Said he, “Therefore, O 
Ananda! be ye lamps unto yourselves. Be ye a refuge 
to yourselves. Betake yourselves to no external refuge— 
look not for refuge to anyone but yourselves.” For- 
giveness was entirely foreign to his philosophy. He 
said, “By one’s self the evil is done—by one’s self the 
evil is purified. Self is the Lord of self, who else could 


29 


SALVATION 


be the Lord?” “He who has tasted the sweetness of 
solitude and tranquility is free from fear and free 
from sin.” 


MoHAMMED was a fatalist. While he declared that 
nothing could save a man from his fixed fate yet he 
advocated good works as a means of bettering his future 
condition. When dying, he said to his daughter, “O 
Fatima, work ye out that which will win you acceptance 
with the Lord for I verily have not power to save you 
in any wise.” Later he spoke concerning himself and 
said, “O Lord, I beseech thee, assist me in the great 
agonies of death.”” Then he exclaimed three times, 
“Gabriel, come close to me.” He found no comfort 
in Christ because he had declared Christ was not God. 
The five pillars of Mohammedanism are, The Creed, 
Prayers, Fastings, Alms-giving and Pilgrimages. 

When a man fakes revelations from God to hide his sins 
he bears the sure marks of an impostor. 


Hinpuism. In Vedic times, salvation was gained by 
sacrifices and ritual. Later the Upanishads taught that 
it came by meditation and self-mortification. Today 
Hinduism teaches that it is secured by ceremonials, 
works of charity, self-renunciation, etc. The Divine 
Song—Bhagavad Gita says, “Repose faith in the idols, 
in ceremonial observances, in ascetic performances, in 
all that you religiously do, and blessing will rest upon 
you.” Transmigration is another phase of salvation. 
Manu said, “The soul may pass through ten thousand 
million births.” 


When men plan Salvation, they always leave out the critical 
point—criminal guilt before God. 


30 


LOVE 


Curist’s love was not a passing sentimental emotion. 
It was a divine devotion, as steady as time and as en- 
during as eternity. ““As the Father hath loved me even 
so have I loved you” (John 15:9). “Having loved his 
own... he loved them unto the end” (John 13:1). “I 
have compassion on the multitude” (Matt. 15:32). “Be- 
hold, how he loved him” (Lazarus, John 11:36). It 
requires a perfect Being to be a perfect lover. The 
selfishness which underlies human love permeates the 
teaching and the lives of the gods of all non-Christian 
religions. John was right when he wrote, “Love is of 


God” (I John 4:7). 


ConFucius’ love was purely human, usually faithful, 
sometimes fickle. His statement, “Do not unto others 
what you would not have others do unto you,” is not 
the utterance of a lover, but the policy of a peaceable 
man trying to avoid trouble. However, he did not always 
carry out this teaching himself. “Once Joo Pei wished 
to see him but Confucius declined on the ground of 
being sick. When the bearer of the message went out 
the door Confucius took up his harpsichord and sang 
to it so Pei might hear him.” This has been laid up 
against Confucius as an effort to insult Pei. 


BuppuHa’s fanatical teaching went so far as to dis- 
courage the exercise of human love, as his teaching 
shows. “From love cometh sorrow; from love cometh 
fear; whosoever is free from love, for him there is 
no sorrow, whence should come fear to him.” This 
crushing of love was tragically demonstrated in his own 
conduct when, on the night in which he abandoned his 
home, he looked at his sleeping wife and child, but 


31 


LOVE 


would not kiss them good-by, lest it awaken them and 
their pleadings should cause him to give up his ascetic 
plans. 


MoHAMMED’S love was intensely carnal. He became 
enamored with Zainab, the wife of his adopted son Zaid. 
When Zaid discovered this he divorced Zainab in order 
that Mohammed might marry her because Mohammed 
had reported a revelation saying, “It is not for a be- 
lieving man, or for a believing woman, when God and 
His apostle have decided an affair, to have choice in 
that affair, and he who rebels against God and His 
apostle has erred with an obvious error” (Koran, Chap. 
33, vs. 36). Once after capturing a town he spoke bit- 
terly as the bodies of his old opponents were thrown 
into the pit. Later one of his victims, who was brought 
out for execution, exclaimed, ““Who will take care of 
my little girl?” “Hell fire,” replied Mohammed and 
ordered him to be cut down. 


The Hindus had a “god of love,” but it was only a Cupid 
with a bow, making love matches. 


Hinpu love is very fickle. It centers in self. When 
it reaches beyond the realm of self-interest it suddenly 
vanishes. The command of Christ, “Love thy neighbor 
as thyself,’ is impossible to a caste-bound Hindu, be- 
cause the bounds of his caste are the limits of his 
friendship. Beyond that is the realm where religious 
fanaticism turns the emotions of love into hatred. 


If you paged the Universe and called for the Hindu gods by 
name not one of them could be found. They exist only in 
men’s minds. 


32 


PRAYER 


CHRIST was a man of true prayer. It was signally 
marked by constant access to the Father. “I know that 
thou hearest me always” (John 11:42). By prayer for 
His own (John 17; Luke 22:32). By secret prayer 
(Luke 6:12; Mark 1:35). Prayer for children (Matt. 
19:31). Prayer before eating (Mark 6:41). When in 
soul agony (Matt. 26:42; Heb. 5:7). For His enemies 
(Luke 23:34). Christ’s comprehensive knowledge of 
prayer and His faithful perseverance in its daily prac- 
tice is a startling contrast to the vain repetitions of the 
Hindus and Mohammedans and the prayerless life of 
Confucius. Paul said, “Pray without ceasing.” Buddha 
said, “Pray not.” 


ConFucius admitted that he prayed. However, it 
was all ceremonial. To him, prayer for human needs 
and spiritual aid was idle declamation for the reason 
that “everything in the universe is ruled and governed 
by unerring, unchangeable, inexorable law which can 
in no whit be altered.” His method of prayer was the 
living of a virtuous life. He said, “He who has offended 
against heaven has none to whom he can pray.” 


BupDHA said, “Pray not: the darkness will not 
brighten. Ask naught from the silence, for it cannot 
speak. . . . Seek not from the helpless gods by gift or 
hymn. Within yourselves deliverance must be sought.” 
The one expression used by Buddhists which comes 
nearest to prayer is the one which is used over and 
over by lips, prayer-wheels and flags, “Om mani padmi 
hom’’—“‘Oh the jewel in the lotus, Amen.” If you can 


33 


PRAYER 


tell what its particular value is as a prayer you can 
do better than the Buddhists can who use it. 


If a person offered to show you an ingenious way to com- 
mit suicide would you think him a friend? That is all that 
Buddha offered his followers. 


MoHAMMED strongly advocated prayer. For some 
time he sought a means of calling people to prayer as 
the Jew did with the trumpet, and the Christians with 
the church bell. Then a disciple had a vision of an 
angel desiring that someone would call aloud, “Allah 
Akbar.” “Great is the Lord. There is no other God 
but He and Mohammed is His prophet. Come to 
prayer.” So Mohammed bade his negro servant, Bilal, 
to carry out the divine request, which he did from the 
summit of the mosque, adding, “Prayer is better than 
sleep.””, Mohammed made prayer exacting. “The very 
act of coughing, spitting, sneezing or rubbing the skin 
in consequence of a fly bite in the midst of prayer 
renders all the past null and void and obliges the 
worshiper to recite his prayer all over.” 

Jesus said, “He that exalteth himself shall be abased.” 


HINDUISM is a religion composed of reciting prayers, 
but they are to an impersonal god for things which 
“fate” will not allow changed. The Hindu has little 
idea of deliverance except from demons and the evils 
which they may inflict. While the Hindu prays to an 
impersonal god he cannot offer the prayer without 
some object to personify that nonentity, so he sets up 
an idol to help his mind try to realize the existence 
of an entity which he says does not exist. 


34 


TEACHING 


Curist’s teaching bore the authority of God—“This 
is my beloved Son, hear him” (Mark 9:7). Jesus said 
to the Father, “I have given them the words which thou 
hast given me” (John 17:8). “He taught as one having 
authority and not as the scribes” (Mark 1:22). His 
teaching was endorsed by spiritual hearers—“He taught 
in their synagogue, being glorified of all” (Luke 4:15). 
“The common people heard him gladly” (Mark 12:37). 
His declaration to the Samaritan woman, “We know 
what we worship,” is a striking contrast to the uncer- 
tainty of Confucius, the vagaries of Buddha and the 
presumption of Mohammed. 


ConFucius called himself a “transmitter” and not a 
“maker” of knowledge. He also said, “I do not open 
up the truth to one who is not eager to get knowledge, 
nor help out anyone who is not anxious to explain him- 
self.” “My studies are low but they reach high; and 
there is Heaven—that knows me. If my doctrines are 
to prevail, it is so ordered of God; if they are to fail it 
is so ordered of God.” He taught four things. “Letters, 
ethics, devotion of soul and truthfulness. Also the Odes, 
History and the maintenance of the rules of propriety.” 
He said, “I neither meddle with Physics or Meta- 
physics; extraordinary things and spirtiual beings I do 
not talk about. The toiling of thought among uncer- 
tainties is worse than useless.” He thus acknowledged 
the need of divine revelation. 


BuppHA was neither a social nor a political reformer. 
He said, “As the vast ocean, O disciples, is impreg- 
nated with one taste, the taste of salt, so also this Law 
and Doctrine is impregnated with one taste—the taste 


35 


TEACHING 


of deliverance.”’ This “taste” was his longing for an- 
nihilation. He bitterly opposed the thought of Atone- 
ment—‘“‘Can the slaughter of an innocent victim take 
away the sins of mankind? What love can a man 
possess who believes that the destruction of life will 
atone for evil deeds?” Concerning his teaching he said, 
“Whatsoever has not been revealed by me, let that 
remain unrevealed and what has been revealed, let it 
be revealed.” 


MouAMMED began teaching when about forty years 
old. It is doubtful if he could read or write unless he 
learned late in life. He called himself the “unlettered 
prophet.” He claimed to receive his teaching from 
Gabriel and backed his utterances with strong declara- 
tions. “Verily if men and genii were purposely assem- 
bled, that they might produce a book like the Koran 
they could not produce one like it, although one of them 
assist the other.”” Again he said, “By the star when it 
setteth,— Mohammed erreth not, nor is he led astray; 
neither doth he speak of his own will.”? Whenever he 
changed any statement for his own benefit, he defended 
himself thus: “Whatever verse we shall abrogate, or 
cause thee to forget, we will bring thee a better one, 
or one like it.” 


HiNnpuUIsM is a combination of the kitten and the 
monkey theory of escape from evil. The cat seizes its 
kitten which remains passive while the little monkey 
escapes by clinging to its parent. The Brahmans, like 
the Pharisees, are the self-constituted teachers of their 
sacred books. No one else has a right to expound them. 


36 


MiLIREAGGCL ESS 


CuRist’s miracles set forth His Deity. He said, “If 
I, with the finger of God, cast out devils” (Luke 11:20). 
“The Father that dwelleth in me, he doeth the works” 
(John 14:10). He healed the man with the palsy, 
saying, ‘““That ye may know that the Son of man hath 
power on earth to forgive sins” (Matt. 9:6). Nicodemus 
recognized their testimony to Christ. ““No man can do 
these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him” 
(John 3:2). False teachers evade miracles like the 
hireling evades fidelity in time of danger. Confucius 
called them magic, Buddha denounced them, Mo- 
hammed evaded them and the Hindus faked them. 


CoNnFUCIUS ignored everything miraculous. He taught 
that “Heaven and earth are the parent powers of the 
universe on which depend the generation and nourish- 
ment of all things.” He refused to talk about super- 
natural things and classed all the performances around 
him under the title of magic. He did not consider 
himself obligated to investigate any subject farther than 
his mind could reason it out. 


BuppHa. Whatever miracles may have been at- 
tributed to Buddha, after his death, it is certain that 
he did not welcome opportunities while he lived. When 
Kisagotami brought her dead baby to him, asking for 
medicine to restore it, he said, ““Yes, I know some. It 
is mustard seed and you must get it at a house where 
no one has died,” and so sent her away. She wandered 
long in search of it but failed and finally left her dead 
baby in a forest. Contrast Christ raising Jairus’ daugh- 
ter. The type of miracles attributed to Buddha are 
fables. “‘Linhalese books make him do wonders with a 


ov 


MIRACLES 


bow which one thousand men could not bend, and the 
twang of whose string was heard seven thousand miles.” 
“Buddha is said once to have caused rain that he might 
take a bath.” He seems, however, to have opposed mira- 
cles for he said, “Ye are not, O monks, to display 
physical power or miracle of superhuman kind before 
the laity. Whosoever does so is guilty of misdemeanor.” 


MouAMMED disclaimed the power to work miracles, 
giving various excuses to his tormentors, viz., ““Those 
whom God hath ordained to believe should believe with- 
out miracles.” ‘“‘Predecessors have despised the mira- 
cles of former prophets, therefore God would work no 
more among them.” At Medina he said to his army that 
“God had formerly sent Moses and Jesus with the 
power of working miracles and yet men would not be- 
lieve; therefore He had now sent them a prophet of 
another order, commissioned to force belief by the 
power of the sword.” 


When Mohammed adopted the slogan, “Accept religion or 
pay tribute,” it looked like a money making scheme. 


Hinputism. It is the ambition of Brahman priests and 
fakirs to acquire miraculous power. Many are the 
frauds they practice. One deceiver filled a pit partly 
full of chaff, set an idol on the chaff and covered it 
with dirt. He announced that a god would rise out of 
the ground. He secretly wet the chaff—it swelled and 
the idol burst through the earth to the astonishment of 
the worshipers. 


38 


INTERCESSION 


CuristT looked out on a world full of prayers without 
answers; a world crowded with human needs with no 
intercessor. What non-Christian teacher ever used this 
expression, “I have prayed for thee that thy faith fail 
not” (Luke 22:32), or expressed such sublime assurance 
in prayer as this, “I know that thou hearest me always,” 
or prayed with a confidence in the future such as Christ 
manifested in John 17? Paul said of Christ, ‘““Where- 
fore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that 
come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make 
intercession for them” (Heb. 7:25). 


ConFucius had no conception of intercession. Once 
he was ill and a disciple asked permission to pray. “Is 
that usual?”’ asked Confucius. “It is,” replied the dis- 
ciple. “The Book of Prayer says, ‘Pray to the spirits 
in heaven above and the earth below.’ ” “In that case,” 
replied Confucius, “I have been praying for a long 
time.” Thus he refused intercession and implied that 
his manner of living was his method of praying. 


BuppHa did not believe in intercession, mediation, 
substitution or priestly assistance. He recognized no 
Supreme Being, therefore there was no one to whom 
he could appeal. His claim to have reached Buddha- 
hood (perfection) obviated any need of intercession for 
himself. His doctrine that deliverance can come only 
through self-culture made intercession useless. How- 
ever his followers teach this formula, “Let him utter the 
name of Buddha serenely. On the strength of his ut- 
tering Buddha’s name he will, during every repetition 


39 


INTERCESSION 


expliate the sins which involves in births and deaths 
during eighty million kalpas.” 

Buddha’s resistance against his death shows he was not 
anxious to follow his own teaching and suffer the “dissolution 
of the ego.” 


MOHAMMED gave prayer an important place in his 
religion but he overlooked intercession. He linked his 
followers together in a strong bond but never taught 
them to pray for each other. Said he, “Know that every 
Moslem is brother of every other Moslem. All of you 
are on the same equality. Ye are one brotherhood.” 
However, his followers have ascribed to him great 
power of intercession as is found in the Creed, Section 
VIII—‘“‘We are bound to believe and hold as certain 
that our venerable prophet Mohammed shall with suc- 
cess intercede for his people at the great day of ex- 
amination. This will be the first intercession; but at 
the second God will be entirely relented and all the 
faithful Mussulmans shall be transported into a state 
of glory.” 


HinputsM isolates the individual as though he were 
spiritually quarantined and makes him solve his own 
problems and fight his own moral and spiritual battles 
single-handed. Intercession is unknown as a working 
power. However, individual prayer has a prominent 
place and great value. “‘An offering consisting of mut- 
tered prayers is ten times more efficacious than a sacri- 
fice at which animals are killed. A prayer which is 
inaudible (to others) surpasses it a hundred times and 
the mental (recitation of sacred texts) one thousand 
times.” 


40 


ASSURANCE 


CurisT has been the outstanding religious teacher of 
the world in presenting guarantees with His work. Those 
guarantees were like certified checks. They showed that 
there was a deposit equal to the full amount promised. 
The words, “That ye may know,” was one of His 
favorite expressions. The proof He offered the world 
was, “That the world may know that I love the Father,” 
a proof which He passed on through His disciples when 
He left. “By this shall all men know that ye are my 
disciples, if ye have love one to another” (John 13:35). 
“We know what we worship” (John 4:22). “Ye shall 
know the truth” (John 8:32). “In that day ye shall 
know” (John 14:20). There were no “doubts” in 
Christ’s mind and He passed His certainties on to His 
followers. 


When Hindus link sin with God they cancel all possibility 
of having a Savior, for God could not save Himself or anyone 
else if He kept on being a sinner. 


CoNnFucIUS aimed to teach only those things which 
carried sufficient assurance with them to be self-evident 
and beyond doubt. All that his followers could ever 
get from him was what he had learned by the study of 
the Odes or could think out by his own reasoning. He 
left them always in the dark regarding spiritual truths, 
although they often asked him to explain them. 


BuDDHA gave assurance upon only one_ subject, 
namely, “‘extinction,” as he said, “I am your surety 
for non-return.” He taught that “the happiness of the 


Al 


ASSURANCE 


gods themselves—men, animals or plants, perhaps in 
some form of birth, is temporary and marred by the 
consciousness that it soon must end.” 

Buddha was very sarcastic about the ignorance of people 


who thought that they existed. He has doubtless since been 
surprised at his ignorance in thinking he did not exist. 


MowaMMEn’s chief line of assurance for his fol- 
lowers was that of fatalism and rewards. He used them 
much with his soldiers. He taught that the destiny of 
each was fixed before he was born; that no soul could 
die except by the permission of God and that those 
who died in battle went straight to Paradise while any 
who refused to die in battle would probably die at the 
same time elsewhere without gaining the reward. These 
teachings had tremendous power over his followers. 

When Mohammed lived, he claimed that he had been to 
heaven and seen God, Jesus and Moses, but when he came to 


die he could not even get the attention of Gabriel, although 
he called him often. Something must have been wrong. 


Hinputsm’s ground of assurance was as follows: 
“Brahma, all-working, all-loving, all-smelling, all- 
tasting, grasping this All, speaking naught, heeding 
naught, this is myself within my heart, this is Brahma. 
To him shall I win on going hence. He that hath this 
thought hath indeed no doubt.” 

Mohammed’s conduct during his last days of suffering indi- 


cate that he was not drawing any peace from his past life 
or teaching. 


42 


OVERCOMING 


Curist did not “overcome” by culture, but by the 
surrender of His whole life to the Holy Spirit. Con- 
fucius’ plan was to try to cleanse the stream of human 
evil by cultivating the good, while he let the source 
remain polluted; Buddha taught that the only way to 
cleanse it was by drying it up altogether; Mohammed 
tried it by putting in false purifiers and the Hindus by 
trying to make themselves believe that the stream was 
naturally clean. Christ gave the only successful remedy, 
saying, “Ye must be born again.” This is to be ac- 
companied with a life of surrender to the indwelling 
Holy Spirit. 


ConFucius’ plan for overcoming evil was by indi- 
vidual self-culture. He taught that “Perfect virtue con- 
sists in the practice of five things: Gravity, generosity 
of soul, sincerity, earnestness and kindness.” But he 
confessed his own failure saying, “In the way of the 
superior man there are four things, to not one of which 
have I yet attained: (1) To serve my father as I would 
require my son to serve me. (2) To serve my prince, etc. 
(3) To serve my elder brother, etc. (4) To set the ex- 
ample in behaving to a friend,” etc. But he said nothing 
about his behavior before God. 


Why did Confucius refuse to recognize God in his life? 
For just the same reason that others do—pride of heart. 


Buppua’s theories for overcoming were, “Let a wise 
man blow off the impurities of his self as a smith blows 
off the impurities of silver, one by one, little by little, 
from time to time.” He endorsed the act of Channo, 
who committed suicide during illness. “Anyone who 
lays down this body and takes another one, I call blame- 

43 


OVERCOMING 


worthy. Brother Channo committed suicide without 
blame.” He taught that even love must be suppressed 
to overcome. “Let, therefore, no man love anything; 
those who love nothing and hate nothing have no fet- 
ters.” However, in the next chapter he says, “Let a 
man overcome anger by love.” 


MoHAMMED was the most lax of all teachers in over- 
coming sin and in-practicing what he preached. He 
taught, “Perform your covenant with God... . Violate 
not your oaths since ye have made God a witness over 
you.” “Therefore take not your oaths between you de- 
ceitfully, lest your foot slip after it hath been steadfastly 
fixed and ye taste evil in this life and suffer a grievous 
punishment in the life to come.’ However, he broke 
his own covenant when he married Mary, his Egyptian 
concubine, and then used his prophet office to cover his 
sin. His revelation said, ““God hath allowed you the 
dissolution of your oaths and God is your master.” 


Hinpuism has various theories about overcoming evil, 
all of which are based on self-mortification and end in 
a final extinction. The Yoga is a religious state which 
consists in “fixing the thoughts on the tip of the nose, 
tip of the tongue, on the point of the palate and the 
roof of the mouth. In this way different heavenly sen- 
sations and ecstatic states are produced . . . by means 
of which perceptions the mind is supposed to be steadied 
because it is no longer attracted by outward objects. 
The sixfold Yoga for obtaining ecstasy — Sublime 
Morals—is, Restraint of breath and the senses; Medita- 
tion; Fixed Attention; Investigation and Absorption.” 
Hinduism has no regeneration. 


44 


PRIESTHOOD 


CuRIST was a priest after the order of Aaron in His 
Atonement work and after the order of Melchizedek in 
His resurrection work. No non-Christian teacher has 
assumed this position. “For there is one God, and one 
mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus” 
(I Tim. 2:5). “For through him we both have access 
by one Spirit unto the Father” (Eph. 2:18). He “sat 
down on the right hand of God’ (Heb. 10:12). “To 
appear in the presence of God for us” (Heb. 10: 24). 
Christ was the only priest who had an offering that 
met the human need, therefore He is the only Savior 
that sinners can ever find. 


ConFucius used the word Heaven instead of God. 
He eliminated God and offered sacrifices to the dead as 
though they still lived around him. He never played 
the roll of a priest nor did he teach others to do so 
except perhaps in connection with the worship of ances- 
tors, and more especially with the Emperor’s annual 
sacrifice. The celebrated translator Legge said of Con- 
fucius, “I am unable to recognize him as a great man. 
He was not before his age though he was above the 
mass of scholars of his time. He threw no new light 
on any of the questions which have a world-wide in- 
terest. He gave no impulse to religion. He had no 
sympathy with progress.” 

If Christ had been like Confucius He would not have 
taught us to pray, “Our Father which art in heaven.” He 
would have said, “Let the gods alone.” 


Buppua saw the evils of idolatry and opposed it and 
also the idol priests because they offered sacrifices which 
took away life. He endorsed asceticism, saying, “A 
wise man should leave the ordinary life and follow the 

45 


PUI DES Oe 


state of a monk for he must pass through monkhood 
and suppression to Nirvana. Buddha said concerning 
himself, “I have first broken the egg shell of ignorance 
and alone in the universe obtained the most exalted 
Buddhahood. Thus, O disciples, I am the eldest, the 
noblest of Beings.” 

If a religion promises salvation but cannot deliver you 
from sin it is trying to work the “confidence game,” and 
rob you. 

MouAMMED bitterly opposed idolatry and never en- 
dorsed any priestly service. He saw that if he tolerated 
priests they would rival him in spiritual authority. He 
determined to stand alone in religious leadership and so 
chose to have his authority vested in the office of the 
prophet. He was given the title of Priest and King after 
he conquered Mecca, but he evidently felt that the title 
of prophet suited his purpose better for he did not 
change. 

If Christ at the last supper had commissioned Peter to 
kill Pilate or Herod it would have sounded like Mohammed’s 
last command to his disciple Osama. 

HinpuismM. In Vedic times, the priests taught that, 
“He who sacrificed one hundred horses would gain a 
larger power than the god Indra himself possessed— 
so that he could even dethrone the god of the heavens. 
The priest’s duties were as follows: “He must rise 
early, purify himself by bath and prayers, open the 
sanctuary doors and gently awaken the god (who is 
supposed to be sleeping) by chanting its praises. He 
worships guardian deities, bathes the feet of the chief 
deity, clothes it, decorates it with jewelry, sandal and 
flowers, waves incense and finally sets cooked food 
before it and later betel nut and leaf.” 


RECEIVED WORSHIP 


CurisT always was and always will be worshiped. 
At His birth God said, “Let all the angels of God wor- 
ship him” (Heb. 1 6). The wise men worshiped Him 
(Matt. 2:11). Zebedee’s sons and their mother (Matt. 
20:20). At the Ascension the disciples worshiped Him 
(Luke 24:52). ‘‘All that dwell on the earth shall wor- 
ship him” (Rev. 13:8). “At the name of Jesus every 
knee shall bow” (Phil. 2:10). Grasp, if you can, the 
contrast between the angelic hosts saying to Christ, 
“Holy! Holy! Holy, Lord God Almighty,” and that of 
Mohammed’s followers preserving his wash water as 
sacred, or of the Hindus falling in adoration before a 
filthy, disgusting, long-haired fakir. 


ConFucIus never sought human worship, although 
he said that he hoped to be remembered after death 
and to be honored for his teaching. Someone has said, 
“Confucius gave his followers no God to worship so 
they have come to worship him.” Chinese children on 
entering the schoolroom bow before his picture as their 
patron saint of education, if not more. There are said 
to be over sixteen hundred Confucian temples in China, 
while his teaching dominates the Empire. 

Confucius said, “I know not life.” Then why did he set 


God aside and take all the responsibility of teaching how 
man should live? 


Buppua’s extravagant claim of having reached the 
end of all human desire and of having attained Buddha- 
hood (perfect enlightenment) caused his followers to 
look upon him as a super-human being. This attitude 
naturally carried with it profuse homage and many 


47 


RECEIVED WORSHIP 


supreme titles. His terse, epigrammatic proverbs are an 
illustration of Paul’s description of the teachings of the 
heathen. “These, having not the law, are a law unto 
themselves: which show the work of the law written in 


their hearts” (Rom. 2:14, 15). 


MouAmMMED did not claim human worship but he 
required respect as the “prophet of God,” and demanded 
unquestioned faith in his teaching. After he made the 
ten years’ truce with the Meccans he was greatly exalted 
and given the place of priest and king by his followers. 
So intense was their devotion that a hair dropping from 
his head and the water in which he washed were care- 
fully preserved as having super-human value. He 
claimed to have made a journey to the seven heavens 
and that over each gate he saw the words, “There is 
no God, but God, and Mohammed is the prophet of 
God.” He claimed that he saw the Most High, covered 
with seventy thousand veils, who put His hand on 
Mohammed’s head and told him a secret, that “he 
should be the most perfect of all beings.” 


HinputsM has priests and gurus who accept worship 
to an extent known in no other religion. The guru 
claims that by certain ascetic performances he has be- 
come a divinity. He requires absolute devotion from 
all those who accept his protection. At the moment of 
death they must call upon him for salvation. His de- 
votees drink the water in which he has washed his feet 
and the saliva which drops from his mouth as he chews 
betel nut. He initiates them to pay homage to his 
favorite deity by a mystic formula or invocation which 
each must keep secret. 


DEATH OF FOUNDER 


Curist’s death stands alone in history as to its 
character and purpose. No non-Christian teacher died 
a victorious death. Each succumbed to physical weak- 
ness. Jesus said regarding His own death, “I lay down 
my life, that I might take it again. No man taketh it 
from me, but I lay it down of myself.” Confucius died 
pathetically alone; Buddha died from eating too much 
pork at his advanced age and Mohammed died in mental 
distress in the arms of his favorite wife. In neither 
case was there any hint of personal salvation for them- 
selves or anyone else. The purpose of Christ’s voluntary 
death was plainly stated. He said, “I lay down my life 
for the sheep.” Paul said, “Christ died for our sins 
according to the scriptures” (I Cor. 15:3). 


ConFucius died in the spring of 478 B.c. in his 
seventy-third year. When seventy years old he expressed 
a longing to see his native Lu in Shantung and started 
thither. One morning near the time of his death he 
walked from the house with his hands behind him, 
crooning: 

“The great mountains must crumble, 


The strong beam must break, 
And the wise man wither away like a plant.” 


In about a week he was dead. His end was melancholy. 
No wife or child was near to comfort him. He uttered 
no prayer and expressed no thought regarding the life 
to come. 


BuppHa had always expressed a desire for his “dis- 
solution,’ but when death approached he resisted it. 
Once after a severe illness he said, “I had pains even 


49 


DEATH OF FOUNDER 


unto death but overcame by force of will.” Later, at 
Pava, he incautiously dined with a blacksmith’s son 
named Chunda and ate some tidbits of a young wild 
boar, which, at his advanced age of eighty, he could 
not digest. Dysentery set in and in a short time his 
career closed. His last hours were full of teaching, but 
never did he mention God, sin or forgiveness. He was 
occupied with his self-invented scheme for self-culture 
and his hobby of the extinction of all desire. 


MoHAMMED took fever in the house of Zainab, one 
of his wives. The fever greatly increased and he asked 
to be taken to the house of his favorite wife, Ayesha, 
“whose tenderness might soothe him.” To her he said 
that his condition was brought on by eating poisoned 
mutton at Khaibar. That was three years before. The 
poisoned mutton had been served him in the home of 
one of his captives with the hope of killing him. During 
his last days his thoughts often dwelt on war and re- 
venge. He directed Osama to lead an expedition into 
Palestine and avenge the death of Zaid, one of his 
favorite followers. These last days were full of intense 
suffering, and the battle of his strong will against death 
presents a touching picture. 


HinputsM looks upon death as a relief from the curse 
of existence. The human soul is an emanation from 
Brahm. While the soul lives here it is separated from 
its original Being and hence it must use every endeavor 
to break through the impediments caused by human 
existence in order to return to extinction in Brahm. 


30 


RESURRECTION 


CuRisT stands alone here. Non-Christian teachers are 
still in their graves. None of them could conquer death. 
Christ said concerning His own life: “I have power to 
lay it down and I have power to take it again.”” What 
Paul says about the relation between Christ’s resur- 
rection and the Christian faith is equally true concerning 
the other teachers and their faiths. “If Christ be not 
raised, then your faith is vain; and ye are yet in your 
sins’ (I Cor. 15:17). No other teachers ever arose 
from the dead. Therefore their faiths have been power- 
less. Their followers are yet in their sins. 


CoNnFUCIUS taught concerning this life only. He once 
said to his disciples, “When I know not the nature of 
life, how shall I inform you what death is?” Tsze 
king asked Confucius, “Do the dead have knowledge 
(that is of our services) or are they without knowl- 
edge?”’ Confucius evaded talking about the future by 
saying, “If I were to say that the dead have such knowl- 
edge, I am afraid that the filial sons and dutiful grand- 
sons would injure their substance in paying the last 
offices to the departed, and if I were to say that the dead 
have not such knowledge, I am afraid lest unfilial sons 
should leave their parents unburied. You need not 
wish, Tsze, to know whether the dead have knowledge 
or not. There is no present urgency about the point. 
Hereafter you will know it for yourself.” 


BuppDHA once said to a sick monk, “After this ex- 
istence there is no beyond.” Again he said concerning 
Esquire Godhiko (who committed suicide), “He has 
passed into Nirvana with no consciousness established.” 


ol 


RESURRECTION 


“‘When we turn from material forms we become free 
from desire and obtain deliverance from existence so 
that there is no more return to this world.” After arising 
from the Bo tree he said, “‘I have obtained deliverance 
by the extinction of self, my body is chastened, my 
mind is free from desire. I have obtained Nirvana.” 


MouamMep believed in the resurrection. After Ibra- 
him, the infant of his Coptic slave concubine, died, he 
addressed it thus, “Ibrahim, if it were not that the hope 
of the resurrection is sure, | would have grieved for 
thee with a sorrow sorer than this.” He had many sharp 
conflicts with the Coreish tribe which did not believe 
in the resurrection and who drove him from Mecca. 
Later he returned, conquered the Coreish people, who 
accepted his teaching and permitted him to destroy 
their three hundred sixty idols. 


It is distressing to a person to be told “there is no sin’ 
when he has to fight against it every hour he is awake. 


bd 


Hinpuism, like Buddhism, does not expect the resur- 
rection of the body, because as soon as a person dies 
they believe that the spirit passes into the body of 
some other creature and keeps up a continuous round 
of births to the end of its existence. The spirit never 
returns to any previous body. By some unexplainable 
means a new animal body is supposed to be on hand 
just at the right moment to receive the disembodied 
spirit. 

When a person offers prayer just for the “reflective mental 
effect,” he ought to class himself with the heathen. 


o2 


ASCENSION 


CurisT solved a critical problem in human thought 
when He ascended to heaven from Olivet more easily 
than He had ever climbed to its summit. Confucius 
never mentioned such a thing as an ascension; Buddha, 
too, evaded the subject; Mohammed invented a story 
about his having gone to heaven on an elongated mule, 
but utterly failed to realize it when he died. The 
trouble was that none of them knew the way. Christ 
knew, because He was ascending up where He was 
before (John 17:5; John 7:33). “I go to him that sent 
me.” “He was parted from them and carried up into 
heaven” (Luke 24:51). If Christ had not come there 
would not be a single human being on earth who could 
tell what would become of us after death. What a 
desperate groping in the dark! 

Buddha said the earth has a rock 2,600,000 miles high. 


How does that compare with his declaration that he had become 
“perfectly enlightened.” 


ConFucius refused to consider the future life, there- 
fore he had nothing to interest him in the hour of 
death and no hope to which his spirit could rise. 
Though he practiced ancestral worship, he taught that 
it should be confined to one’s immediate relatives. 
Said he, “For a man to sacrifice to a spirit which 
does not belong to him is mere flattery.” 


Who ever heard of a good-looking idol-god? They are 
hideous. Why? 


Buppua, so legend says, “in the sixth year of his 
ministry went to heaven to teach his mother, who had 
died seven days after his birth.” This is pure fiction 
because he resented such thoughts in all his teaching. 


D3 


ASCENSION 
When he was asked by Malukya if the earth was 


everlasting, Buddha evaded the answer by saying 
that “such teaching did not contribute to peace and 


enlightenment.” 

Buddha’s religious views were as exaggerated as his fish 
story. He said there were fish in the sea sixteen thousand miles 
long. 


MoHAMMED manifested no consciousness of the 
Divine Presence in the hour of death nor did he give 
any assurance of his being received into a place of 
rest. The vague fancies of his journey to heaven were 
not recalled nor did they furnish a foretaste of the 
future state. He claimed to have been received in each 
of the seven heavens with great respect, to have seen 
his name on all the gates and to have met God, who 
pronounced him the most perfect of all beings; yet at 
his death in Mecca there was not a ray of spiritual 
illumination—nothing but intense human weakness and 
despair. 

Since all religious teachers have evaded working miracles 
there must have been something in miracles as an evidence 
of Christ’s Deity. 

HinpuIsM. One must look in vain to non-Christian 
teachers for any certain assurance of a way to get to 
heaven after death. None of them ever gave a concrete 
example, or a program for the soul in after life. Con- 
trast this with Christianity. When Jesus said that 
Lazarus was carried by angels to Abraham’s bosom 
He lifted the curtain of death and showed the tri- 


umphant entrance of God’s children into the next life. 

When a person tells you there is no such thing as sin, just 
reply that you cannot believe it until you can believe that 
two plus four equals five. 


54 


EXALTATION 


CuRIST in His exaltation far outdistanced all rivals. 
Mohammed tried to exalt himself but signally failed 
to even be moral; Buddha imagined he was exalted but 
it proved to be only in his mind; Confucius evaded 
the subject as one would evade wading into unknown 
quicksands. Christ’s exaltation was an attestation to 
His genuineness. “Wherefore God also hath highly 
exalted him, and given him a name which is above 
every name” (Phil. 2:9). Christ set aside non-Christian 
teachers when He said, “‘All that ever came before 
me are thieves and robbers” (John 10:8). He placed 
John the Baptist above them all by saying, “Among 
them that are born of women there hath not risen a 
greater than John the Baptist.” 


ConFucius adopted the Chinese custom of speaking 
humbly. He said, “The sage and the man of perfect 
virtue — how dare I rank myself with them? It may 
be said of me that I strive to become such without 
satiety, and teach others without weariness. In letters 
I am perhaps equal to other men, but the character of 
the superior man, carrying out in his conduct what he 
professes, is what I have not attained to.” 


BuppuHA explained himself as follows: “As a lotus 
is born in the water, grows up in the water and stands 
lifted above the water undefiled, even so am I born 
in the world, grown up in the world, and I abide over- 
coming the world and by the world undefiled. You 
must call me Buddha. Of what deed is this the result, 
whereby I am thus magical and mighty? This is the 


59 


EX ALTATEON 


fruit of three deeds—alms, control and abstinence.” 
See also “Priesthood.” 

When the Buddhists accept “suicide” for “salvation” they 
fulfil Paul’s words, “Professing themselves to be wise, they 
became fools” (Rom. 1:22). 

MouHAMMED’S extravagant exaltation of himself is 
seen in his account of his journey to heaven as re- 
corded by his biographers. “In the fifth heaven he 
said he met Moses, who began to cry because Moham- 
med, the Arabian boy, would bring more Ishmaelites 
into heaven than he himself had brought Jews.” He 
said he met “‘an angel with a body half fire and half 
snow yet the fire didn’t melt the snow nor the snow 
put out the fire.” In the seventh heaven he said he 
met a “‘tutelary angel having seventy thousand heads— 
each head had seventy thousand faces—each face had 
seventy thousand mouths — each mouth had seventy 
thousand tongues and each tongue spoke seventy thous- 
and languages.” Figure up the number of languages 
he spoke. 

Hinputsm teaches that there is in some men the 
capacity for beholding the Unseen Being. This ability 
is attained as follows: “The twice-born man must, by 
the study of Vedas, by duly observing rites and sacri- 
fices, and by mortifying the affections and lusts of the 
flesh, learn to practice abstraction of spirit and main- 
tain his relation.to the unseen Brahma. Thus he may 
hope to arrive at the perception of the Perfect One 
and obtain deliverance from personal existence.” ““These 
‘holy men’ then become the representatives of the gods. 
Service to them brings a great reward. Even the gods 


become indebted to them for their sacrifices.” 
The man who forsakes Christ may some day find that he 
can embrace devil-worship as a religion. 


RETORN 


Curist alone had knowledge enough of the future 
to promise His return. The other teachers acknowledged 
that their work was finished at death. At the last 
supper Christ promised His disciples, “I will. come 
again and receive you unto myself” (John 14:3). In 
Luke 21:37, He said, ““Then shall they see the Son 
of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.” 
At the ascension the angels announced to the disciples, 
“This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into 
heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen 
him go into heaven.” Paul wrote concerning the return 
of Christ: “Wherefore comfort one another with these 
words” (I Thess. 4:18). No such words occur about 
any non-Christian teacher. 


CoNFUCIUS seems never to have given a hint as to 
what he thought would become of him after death. How- 
ever, his participation in the ancestral sacrifices showed 
that he believed the spirits of departed relatives were 
present. He evidently believed that the spirits remained 
after the death of the body or else that they returned 
for the sacrificial feast held in their honor. 


BuppuA declared that through self-culture he had 
reached the last one of his numerous births and deaths 
and would never return to earth. He promised no 
further help to his followers after his death than that 
which might be secured from the teaching he had given. 
He had no thought of going away to be a mediator, 
to prepare an abode, or to welcome his followers into 
the next existence. His work was over forever and he 
left his trusting disciples to their own individual re- 


Oo” 


RETURN 


sources for he said, “You must work out your own 
deliverance.” 


MoHAMMED’s next meeting with his followers, ac- 
cording to the Koran, is to be at the Judgment, after 
which “the faithful” are to enjoy a heaven which he 
describes with great fulness. One writer says, “The 
delights of the Mohammedan Paradise just suit the 
sensual Arab. Peace and rest under shady trees with 
ever-flowing crystal streams, abundance of all manner 
of dainty food and costly dress, wine that should cheer 
the heart but not cloud the brain, and above all, dark- 
eyed virgin brides of a rare creation.”’ To reach this 
Paradise each person must walk over the abyss on a 
thread like a spider web. Mohammedans will shoot 
across faster than lightning; others will fall into hell. 

When Mohammed allowed his followers to preserve his 


bath water as sacred, he developed a fanatical pride which 
soon drove him to take up the sword to promote his religion. 


HINDUISM teaches that, “‘at death the soul leaves the 
body, ascends on high, clothes itself in a watery veil, 
falls as rain on the earth, is imbibed by some plant, 
passes through it as nourishment and forms a new 
body. When it has finished its transmigrations it ob- 
tains its freedom.”’ Hindu incarnations occur as a re- 
sult of previous deeds which the man (or god) has 
committed. However, in no case does the spirit return 
for the purpose of bringing salvation from sin to 
anyone, 


When a religion does not follow the results of sin beyond 
this life, it has not analyzed it enough to provide a salvation. 


28 


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